"At the Grave of the Forgotten" by Effie Waller Smith

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend March 10, 2019   At the Grave of the Forgotten   Effie Waller Smith

In a churchyard old and still, Where the breeze-touched branches thrill              To and fro, Giant oak trees blend their shade O'er a sunken grave-mound, made              Long ago.   No stone, crumbling at its head, Bears the mossed name of the dead              Graven deep; But a myriad blossoms' grace Clothes with trembling light the place              Of his sleep.   Was a young man in his strength Laid beneath this low mound's length,              Heeding naught? Did a maiden's parents wail As they saw her, pulseless, pale,              Hither brought?   Was it else one full of days, Who had traveled darksome ways,             And was tired, Who looked forth unto the end, And saw Death come as a friend              Long desired?   Who it was that rests below Not earth's wisest now may know,              Or can tell; But these blossoms witness bear They who laid the sleeper there              Loved him well.   In the dust that closed him o'er Planted they the garden store              Deemed most sweet, Till the fragrant gleam, outspread, Swept in beauty from his head              To his feet.   Still, in early springtime's glow, Guelder-roses cast their snow              O'er his rest; Still sweet-williams breathe perfume Where the peonies' crimson bloom              Drapes his breast.   Passing stranger, pity not Him who lies here, all forgot,              'Neath this earth; Some one loved him—more can fall To no mortal. Love is all              Life is worth.            This poem is in the public domain. About This Poem   "At the Grave of One Forgotten" was published in Rosemary and Pansies (Gorham Press, 1909).   Effie Waller Smith was born on January 6, 1879, in Pike County, Kentucky. She is the author of Rosemary and Pansies (Gorham Press, 1909), Rhymes from the Cumberland (Broadway Publishing, 1904), and Songs of the Month (Broadway Publishing, 1904). She died on January 2, 1960. Poetry by Smith   The Collected Works of Effie Waller Smith (Oxford University Press, 1991) "mulberry fields" by Lucille Clifton "Where the Sky Meets the Earth" by W. Todd Kaneko "Elegy for my husband" by Toi Derricotte March Guest Editor: Maggie Smith   Thanks to Maggie Smith, author of Good Bones (Tupelo Press, 2017), who curated Poem-a-Day for this month's weekdays. Read a Q&A with Smith about her curatorial approach this month and find out more about our guest editors for the year. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038